Saturday, June 14, 2008

Gold and Silver Investments

It is a good idea to read this write up about Gold and Silver Investments and find out who Gold and Silver Investments are and what they are like before you deal with them.

In all transactions with gold or any other precious metal with any gold dealer, it is wise to do your own due diligence and find out as much about them as possible.Who Are Gold & Silver Investments & Gold AssetsGold Assets, and Gold and Silver Investments are the same company. Gold and Silver Investments Limited was first established in October 2003 by Mark O’Byrne, a current director. The company was originally set up to offer Irish and UK investor’s access to the global precious metal market as O’Byrne considered there was no indigenous company offering precious metals operating in Ireland.

Gold & Silver Investments & Gold Assets are primarily a financial services company which specializes in wealth preservation by the use of gold and gold products. However, they are principally market makers buying and selling gold, silver and platinum coins and bars

In April 2005 the company was awarded an agency for the prestigious government owed precious metal investor program – The Perth Mint Certificate Program.

In November 2005 Gold and Silver Investments was approved as a Multi Agency Intermediary by the Irish Financial Regulator.

Gold & Silver Investments & Gold Assets have a large range of gold coin and bar bullion products as well as being an agent for the Perth Mint Certificate Program and also promote goldmoney.com for small gold holdings.

They have two offices, The Irish office is in Fitzwilliam Sq in Dublin Ireland and is represented by the website www.gold.ie. The London Office is in Old Broad Street, London and represented by the website www.goldassets.co.uk.

The two Directors are Stephen Flood and Mark O'Byrne. Bio’s on both Directors are available on site.

Gold & Silver Investments supply bullion in coin or bar format. All Bullion is advised to be investment grade or .9999 fine and as such is free from VAT and stamp duty.

Gold & Silver Investments are approved dealers for the Perth Mint of Western Australia.

Investors have three options when buying gold.

First to take physical possession; typically within 10 – 15 days of buying gold in the markets the client will receive a FedEx package containing their investment.

Buy and store at a depository facility. The client must decide whether they wish to have their investment stored in an allocated or unallocated account. An allocated account is segregated from all other wares in a separate box. An unallocated account is pooled with other investors.

Buy through the Perth Mint Certificate of Western Australia.

Upon initial contact with a client Gold & Silver Investments will ask a number of questions to assess the client’s investment needs. They then advise the client of the various options available to them. They provide the client with an indicative order, describing the buying process, all costs, and banking instructions. The client then opens an account with Gold Investments. Once the account is funded an order is placed in the marketplace as per the clients instructions.

Delivery of physical bullion takes 10 – 15 working days, depending on customs and delivery to a storage account will take 5- 10 working days.

For certificates the client is invested within 24 hours of funding the account. The certificates are received 9 business days after the purchase.

Gold & Silver Investments ProductsGold & Silver Investments have a minimum transaction which is €4,000, $5,000 or £2,500 for bullion for personal possession.

To purchase any bullion or participate in the Perth Mint Certificate Program one has to contact Gold & Silver Investments & Gold Assets and open an account and discuss one’s options with a consultant. Then the arrangement is made for a purchase.

Most standard payment methods are available to clients wishing to make a purchase.

Gold & Silver Investments Costs and ChargesGold & Silver Investments and Gold Assets do not charge any commission. There is a margin between the buying and selling price of gold and silver bullion which is how they make their money.

Holding costs are those charges incurred to cover the cost of storage charged by depository companies. These charges will vary depending on the value of the investment being stored and the type of storage being received.

Unallocated storage typically costs 0.50% - 1.00% per annum. Allocated storage is charged at 1.00% - 1.50% per annum. The Perth Mint Certificate Programme has no holding charge for unallocated accounts but does for an allocated account.Gold & Silver Investments SecurityIt should be noted that, as a financial advisor, Gold & Silver Investments Limited, trading as Gold Investments, is regulated by the Irish Financial Regulator as a multi-agency intermediary.

Gold Investments is registered in the Companies Registration Office under Company number 377252. Registered for VAT under number 6397252A . Codes of Conduct for multi-agency intermediaries are imposed by the Financial Regulator.Last Word on Gold & Silver InvestmentsGold and Silver Investments Ltd. have been awarded the MoneyMate and Investor Magazine Financial Analyst of 2006.

It should also be noted that in the EU there is no longer any VAT on investment gold coins and bars due to an EU Gold Directive (98/80/EC) which became law January 1st 2000. The exemption of VAT on gold applies to a number of categories, one of which is " non-numismatic coins of a purity greater than 900/1000 minted post-1800", which is the vast majority of gold coins however, as always, consult your own financial advisers and do your own due diligence before making an decision to purchase gold or silver bullion.

If you have bought any gold or silver bullion from www.goldassets.co.uk or www.gold.ie online, please feel free to leave your feedback on the quality of service and products including any www.goldassets.co.uk or www.gold.ie online complaints and special attention or service given by www.goldassets.co.uk or www.gold.ie online.